Everything around Vincent was getting engulfed.

The darkness kept creeping closer until pitch black darkness was all his eyes could see.

Once again, Vincent could see his body hovering in the darkness. The same place before Vincent arrived in this world.

Vincent turned his gaze at his left arm. On his hand was a black watch.

Vincent raised a puzzled frown since his digital watch was still with Ester.

Ester had kept his watch in her pocket to provide courage. She never gave it back, and the mystery grew bigger. 

Why is there a watch attached to his hand? Vincent wanted to know.

The watch was black and on it was a timer like a typical digital clock. 

The timer displayed four seconds and forty milliseconds, but strangely, time was decreasing at a slow pace.

The five-second timer was acting like a five-minute timer. The time in the soul domain seemed to have a different time flow.

'I thought five seconds for the Blessed Retainer test was very fast.'

'One second in the real world might be one minute in here.'

Vincent pondered while his face was full of curiosity. Next, he decided to use the inspection ability on this mysterious watch.

[Name] Soul Domain Watch

[Condition] ???

'It's a strange watch, indeed.'

'At least it doesn't look like something dangerous.'

'Does that mean this black place is called soul domain?'

Vincent kept thinking while he raised his gaze forward.

In front of him stood a weak white wolf. 

However, it didn't attack.

The white wolf slowly stood up, looked down at the bottomless black ground, and trembled in fear.

The white wolf held its tail and ears down. It showed a sign of weakness, and a perfect opportunity arose.

Vincent could hear it whimper from time to time. It was too afraid to move, and Vincent felt a pang of guilt as the vicious white wolf was terrified to death.

The white wolf in front of him stared down with a pair of terrified golden eyes.

It thought it had died because everything around it was pitch black.

In the white wolf's eyes, Vicent previously was a human prey. Now he appeared like a grim reaper ready to reap its soul.

Vincent had an unfazed expression while he crossed his arms. It made the while wolf wary of him even more. As if he was about to do something more.

Vincent used inspection on the white wolf and then on himself. 

The white wolf had gained despair and terror conditions, while Vincent had lost twenty soul power.

"Can you understand me now, white wolf? " Vincent said as he tried to hide his nervousness behind an angry frown. He tried to bluff as if he was omnipotent to bring it in such a mysterious place.

The white wolf raised its ears for a second. Then they fell down once again. It heard or understood Vincent with its head lowered down.

[Please don't hurt me. I will do anything human.]

A female voice entered Vincent's mind.

"W-WHAT? Did you talk to me? " Vincent took a step forward while he shouted in excitement, talking to the white wolf made him forget all the fear that it might attack him.

[Please don't shout. I will obey. Master of the dead, please let me at least meet my family one last time.]

The white wolf telepathically said as it raised its trembling head to look at Vincent.

"Ok, I won't shout. If you sit, then we can talk. I will not hurt you if you follow my orders." Vincent decided to use this opportunity to see if the white wolf understood his words. If so, then it would sit.

The white wolf trembled its hind legs as it thought it was about to fall, then continued to sit.

The white wolf raised its ears to full attention from surprise as it didn't fall. Then it stared at Vincent and said.

[Now will you let me meet my parents?]

Vincent raised a childish innocent smile. As if a child had gotten what he wanted. 

The retainer bond allowed for the communication of both beings directly from the soul.

"You are not dead yet, and I am not the lord of death. I came from another world, and if you accept, you will become my retainer." Vincent sat down with his legs crossed.

The bottomless ground had a strange resistance that protected the two from falling.

It was like a ground but gave a bizarre feeling. The touch of the invisible ground could not be felt.

Vincent felt like he was floating yet sitting at the same time. Like an actor with strings attached to sit or walk in the air.

[I am dead. The black around us means death. What is retainer thing?]

The white wolf kept insisting it was dead.

Vincent raised a grin. He tilted forward and quickly crawled over to the white wolf. 

Vincent raised his hand over the white wolf's head to give it a head pat.

The white wolf closed its eyes and lowered its head in fright. It thought it was about to die.

*Pat

The white wolf felt a strange yet relaxing sensation. A warm hand was gently brushing over its dirty white fur.

The white wolf opened its golden eyes filled with the intrigue of what the human was doing.

"I want to make a contract with you. You see, this is called a soul domain. I think what you see is the representation of our souls." Vincent raised his second hand and gently brushed the fur on its neck

[Contract? Souls? What's that? This feels good... ]

The white wolf said as Vincent could hear it let a faint purr.

"Were you forced to stay with the pack of gray wolves, didn't you? Did they perhaps kill your parents? Do you want to fight against them with me?" Vincent tried to find a subject to recruit the white wolf.

The white wolf raised its golden eyes at Vincent, stared for a few seconds, and then decided to answer.

[They killed my parents three years ago. I have spent two years happily with my family until their pack arrived.]

The white wolf turned its head with a sad frown to point at its rear with its snout.

[There were other female wolves forced to follow their pack. The first thing they thought me was to how to hide when I would be in heat. To injure myself till the smell of blood hides the trace.]

Vincent could see the rear of the white wolf in bad condition. The injures looked infected, and might even have some rotting flesh under its fur.

The white wolf whimpered as it continued with more saddening news.

[My last female friend passed away yesterday from hunger.]

'Now I feel sorry for the white wolf.'

"You know your condition is bad, right? Make a contract with me and fight with me to survive. " Vincent sat beside the white wolf and hugged it. 

The white wolf had a horrible smell while laced with multiple injuries, but Vincent didn't mind.

"The book of heroes said that a retainer should gain power. If you accept, then I promise to take care of you and love you. Become my family." Vincent decided that if he would survive, then he would take care of the white wolf.

To Vincent, a family was the highest form of trust. A thing he learned from Kevin, aunt Trisha, and grandma Tessy.

The white wolf raised its ears, and its tail faintly swayed. It seemed interested in what Vincent said and enticed by the petting. A feeling it never thought was possible.

[Family? Like a mate?]

The white wolf tilted its head as it asked.

"You don't have a human body so... As a family. Like a brother and a sister. " Vincent said to avert the danger to mate with a wolf. It was a thing he didn't want to think about.

[I... I'm weak, but if I can get stronger then... I will take my revenge. You will fight with me?]

The white wolf stared at Vincent with a pair of vigorous golden eyes. The lost luster returned burning with a passion for revenge. It appeared the deal was accepted.

"Yes, white wolf." Vincent gently petted the dirty fur on the white wolf as he continued, "I plan to let one gray wolf enter the cabin at a time. I will act as bait while you hide. When I shout, "Ambush," you rush and kill the distracted gray wolf."

[Ok human. Become my family. Become my mate.]

The white wolf insisted while it licked Vincent's face with disgustingly smelly saliva, enough to make him puke.

Vincent quickly wiped his face with a contorted expression and forgot to deny the last part.

A little later, his face was clean.

Vincent closed his eyes and imagined for the test to begin. As his eyes opened, a display box was before him.

[Start [Blessed Retainer] test?]

[Agree]      [Cancel]

"Agree. " Vincent said, but nothing happened.

[Human. I can see a glowing thingy in front of me, but I can't read.]

The white wolf said the problem. It was a two-way deal. In the end, this was the soul domain of both beings.

"Say agree to accept. " Vincent instructed the white wolf on what to do.

[I agree]

The white wolf repeated.

Soon the display box changed to a new one. This time the words kept updating in real-time.

[[Blessed Retainer] test starting.]

[Checking compatibility...]

[Checking personality...]

[Blessed Retainer extra test start...]

[Checking seven deadly sins...]

A blinding green light suddenly encased the white wolf. So bright that it lit like a star in the night.

Then the white wolf started to float as if the gravity was gone. It was such a mesmerizing and stunning sight.

Vincent stood up, surprised beyond words. He almost forgot to breathe, staring at the floating green glowing wolf.

*Grrrr

[My tongue is hurting. It feels like its burning.]

[Wait. Now it only feels itchy. It feels like the pain went away.]

The white wolf said it felt pain, but then said it felt like an itch.

"Do you feel better? It might be the mark of the retainer. Mine hurt too." Vincent said as he understood what the white wolf felt.

Vincent turned his gaze at the updating display box and said with an excited smile, " You passed the test. We are a family now."

[Test passed.]

[White wolf has passed the important factors.]

[Blessed retainer gained.]

[Please choose a name.]

[............]

The white wolf gently floated back down. The green glow fainted, and a new white wolf was in front of Vincent.

The white wolf didn't hunch anymore as it stood two feet and a half tall. 

Its noble white fur was clean as it had regained its luster, urging Vincent to touch.

The white wolf had no more injuries. As if it was never injured, to begin with.